Jessica Eisner, M.D., Senior Fellow

Dr. Eisner has over twenty years of experience as a physician, global health educator, leader, medical director and advisor in government, (e.g. Food and Drug Administration, Department of State, and Department of Defense), and industry.

Although the majority of Dr. Eisner’s career has been in drug development and global health, her scientific facility extends to a variety of fields (e.g. water resources, ocean health, education, chemical and biological defense, etc.). As Senior Science Advisor at the US Department of State she functioned as diplomatic liaison between UNESCO Paris [Europe] and the US Government for all national and international UNESCO science and science policy activities [including freshwater, ocean health, climate change, HIV/AIDS education in Africa, water-sanitation and hygiene (WASH) education in Africa and South America, nanotechnology, and the Jordan-based Synchrotron-Light for Experimental Science and Applications in the Middle East (SESAME) project].

As Civilian Deputy Director, Military Infectious Disease Research Program, Dr. Eisner managed strategic partnerships between external constituents (e g industry and greater Department of Defense/ Pentagon), intramural laboratories, legal and intellectual property/technology transfer offices, and international laboratories for a $400 million tri-service global health and infectious disease research and development program for ID Diagnostics and the treatment and prevention of malaria, dengue, bacterial diarrhea, wound infections, and HIV/AIDS. She was awarded the US Army Achievement Medal for Civilian Service during her tenure.

Dr. Eisner has been on the Board of Trustees for a top-rated US HMO (insurance) company and currently sits on the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) Fellowships Advisory Committee; she is also a member of the US Army Medical Materiel and Research Command Institutional Review Board. She has well-honed strategic, technical, management, budgeting, and operational capabilities and uses this substantial experience to envision innovative solutions to medical, scientific, and societal challenges.

Dr. Eisner considers her prowess in synthesizing and translating complex information into digestible content for stakeholder-focused decision support as her greatest skill. After graduating from Cornell College and a tour in the Peace Corps, Dr. Eisner received her MD from the University of California at San Diego; she completed her medical residency at the University of Washington.

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The Potomac Institute for Policy Studies is an independent, 501(c)(3), not-for-profit public policy research institute. The Institute identifies and aggressively shepherds discussion on key science and technology issues facing our society. From these discussions and forums, we develop meaningful science and technology policy options and ensure their implementation at the intersection of business and government.